Maxel

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Everything posted by Maxel

  1. I don't get the relevancy of this... but if it's kool-aid, I'm there. Save me some blue raspberry. I've always had this mental image of the Mayans running out of room to write down dates on their calendars, and sending a boy out to get more from the Paper Trees of the forest. I can see the hapless Mayan boy's little eyes as he sees the invaders that come to destroy his people. It all looks like a Far Side cartoon, too. On a more serious note, the Mayans were a civilization blessed with the preceding cultural knowledge of a people blessed by God (the Nephites) and would have unusually advanced knowledge of science, but they themselves were not (as far as we know) blessed by prophets. It's safe to assume that, for whatever reason, the Mayan calendar does not actually predict the end of the world. Personally, I think that a phenomenon is coming in 2012 that affects the system of natural science that the Mayans used for their accurate prediction of the passage of time (e.g., if the Mayans derived their calendar from astronomical calculation, then some phenomenon affecting space would happen in 2012 that would affect their ability to 'see' past it). As for the other scientific 'stuff' mentioned, that's all new to me and I'm off to digest it right now (with some breakfast cereal). Very interesting stuff!
  2. I think that's close to the truth, if not all of it. I'm not a financial expert, but from my knowledge interest can be set in place as an incentive to help the otherwise slothful be encouraged to repay loans in a timely manner. However, large amounts of interest is a vile money-making scheme that exploits your brother in the worst way.I think the truth is found in the definition of 'usury': dictionary.com; italics mineI think the Biblical references you cited may have meant either 'interest' or 'usury' depending on the situation.
  3. Whichever comes second in the given case. The only Biblical precedence for healthy plural marriage is not governmental in its origin and practice, but religious.I would be interested to hear what proponents of gay rights have to say about this- and about the other cases around the world where polygamy advocates point to gay marriage as paving the way for polygamist marriage. I notice not one of them have touched this thread yet.
  4. And proponents of gay marriage continue to deny the logic of polygamy being the next step... I thought it mildly interesting that the two men under trial are members (or former members) of the FLDS church. Their lawyer is claiming it's a matter of religious persecution as well, because the men's religion condones polygamy.
  5. You're both right. On the one hand, all sin separates us from God spiritually. Christ's atonement is the only way to overcome that barrier. Without the atonement, stealing a pack of gum would be as damning, in eternal effect, as murder. On the other hand, there are degrees of severity of sin. It is much easier, and far less time and energy consuming, to repent of a cruel look or word than of punching someone else in the face. This is because the nature of repentance, and what it entails: feeling godly sorrow, making restitution (inasmuch is possible), and apologizing to those you offended. Simply because God cannot look 'upon the least degree of sin with allowance' does not mean that there isn't different degrees within sin itself.
  6. I think it would depend on the friends she was going with, and if she has a solid itinerary. I know I'm still young, but I think it's fair that I raise a voice of warning, having just come out of high school a few years ago. The common idea among the worldly is that spring break is the time to get sexed up- I had normally conservative friends that lost their virginity on spring breaks (in high school). Even an LDS college group that went recently was accosted by wandering females looking for some 'fun'. Just some words from the cradle- it can get as bad as they say it is out there, and a little more.
  7. Honesty really is the best policy. Personally, I'm very go-getter when it comes to dating: I develop a friendship with a girl, I ask her out on one to two dates, and if it goes well I tell her how wonderful I think she is and tell her I plan to continue asking her out/ask her to go steady with me. Very blunt, but the ladies appreciate it. Plus, it helps stave off unnecessary hurt later. It also helps preserve all the healthy elements of friendship without causing lingering worry/pain. I'm also one of those guys who refuses to kiss a girl for the first time without asking her, so take my experience with a grain of salt. By the way, this is the only dating method that netted me a worthwhile, long-term relationship. It also helped me avoid growing too attached to a girl that thought of me 'as a brother' (which is girl lingo for 'I don't like you' )
  8. I usually agree with you LM, but I think you're off base here. The prophets have said that sexual immorality ranks among the most grievous of sins: Keeping Covenants Teachings of Joseph F. SmithWhile the girl is to be pitied, the behavior is to be abhorred. It is prostitution of the worst degree: not only is it the selling of that girl's body, it is the selling of one of the key experiences that help defines healthy female sexuality: the losing of a woman's virginity. On another note, most of the comments thus far have been about the act itself, not reflecting necessarily on the girl. The ones dealing with the girl have not been overtly judgmental or derogatory.
  9. This is the first I've heard about it, but the article claims it has been happening all around the world for a while now. I don't want to marry a woman who sold her virginity. I can see marrying a woman who lost it and since repented, but not one who treated her own body as a commodity to be sold. It's the signs of the times- men will be haters of their own flesh. Or, in other words, they will not value their own body in its spiritual capacity, but only as another tool for self-gratification.
  10. Thanks. I feel like a kid returning to a favorite candy store. And yes, an avatar is the picture next to your name on all your posts- mine is a picture of the Christus.
  11. Nice. Remind me not to pick a fight with that guy.
  12. Awesome thoughts, bytor2112! On a lighter note, I don't think I could handle every day being Sunday. I can barely stay awake through all my meetings as it is. I can't imagine having them EVERY day.
  13. Very nice read. I particularly like the fact that McLellin retained and proclaimed a testimony of the Book of Mormon, even after leaving the Church. Also, his description of Joseph Smith seems unusually fair-minded for an apostate. I'd be interested in reading the book when it's published!
  14. Welcome! I'm not one for instant chat, but if you ever want to talk about anything, I browse the forums. Good luck!
  15. Yes, it's cheating. =P Click here for your ice cream cone! I felt the need for the guessing game because of my excitement over returning. How the two are related, I don't exactly know....
  16. Not Vision of Lehi, although I had wondered what happened to him. No ice cream cones yet! Hint: I kept my avatar the same.
  17. Hey all- Had to get a new email address, so I decided to get a new account too. I posted frequently roughly 6 months ago, then dropped suddenly off the radar. Some things happened in my personal life that required all my energy. First one to guess my previous screen name receives.... An electronic picture of an ice cream cone. JUST FOR THEM!!
  18. My deepest sympathies for your husband jolee65; no matter how often the blatant insult of misplaced loyalty is thrown, it continues to cut deep. OtterPop, you said some interesting things I'd like to comment on. My apologies to the OP for the tangent. Not entirely accurate; our focus is that we have the full gospel in our religion, not that others' are wrong. Some might say it's the same thing, but it's the same difference between optimism and pessimism: the LDS say we have something wonderful and glorious, and we want to share it with the world. *Holds off jumping* I assume this section is supposed to clarify your hazy accusation that the Church sends missionaries out to tell other people they joined 'a wrong religion'. I don't see how it does... so I'll continue my jumping. The purpose of missionaries is to share the Gospel, plain and simple. The fact that if someone is not LDS they're in the 'wrong religion' is tertiary to the facts that happiness comes from being close to God, and that the LDS religion best teaches how to achieve that closeness. Those are the messages the missionaries actually teach. The former, because the aim is to tear down, not build up. I am sorry it happens to you- it happens to all of us at one time or another. This is not a malevolent suggestion, but merely an observation: perhaps you would be attacked less if you didn't post on a board with the expressed purpose of education and information about the religion you left?